Due to the overwhelming response to the first look at the new-and-improved SSF2T: HD Remix version of Akuma, CapcomDigital delivered with an sneak peek at the Russian brawler, Zangief!

Though still a work in progress, the blog states that there may be some minor changes applied before the look is finalized. Much of the responses have been favorable in support of Udon’s latest progress. Some purists have been clamoring for the art team to utilize art designs from previous Street Fighter II iterations in which the following response was offered by producer, Rey Jimenez:

“We wanted to use a style that was easily reproducible, but still had enough detail worthy of the 1st HD Street Fighter game. Why reproducible you ask? Well, to be honest, doing all the frames of animation is just too much work for one person to do. Like many 2D animations you see of this quantity, there’s a team of people working on the project. Each person needs to be able to keep to the art style. So we chose this art look because its relatively easy to reproduce while still keeping a look that is undoubtedly Street Fighter.”

I wouldn’t mind seeing some homage to previous SF art styles, but at the same time, it’s great to see a fresh new look. So far, everything sounds very promising and I am confident that it will become a HUGE hit within the Street Fighter community.

[Via CapcomDigital]